Bridging and signalling subsystems and methods for private and hybrid communications systems including multimedia systems

A method of communicating nonisochronous data over an isochronous channel, comprising:

• receiving nonisochronous data from a nonisochronous network;
• dividing the nonisochronous data into first and second segments;
• encapsulating the first and second segments into a first frame and a second frame, respectively;
• and
• queuing the first and second frames for transmission over the isochronous channel.

A computer program for communicating nonisochronous data over an isochronous channel, the program encoded on a computer-readable medium and operable to execute the following steps:

• receiving nonisochronous data from a nonisochronous network;
• dividing the nonisochronous data into first and second segments;
• encapsulating the first and second segments into a first frame and a second frame, respectively;
• and
• queuing the first and second frames for transmission over the isochronous channel.

A method of communicating an isochronous signalling frame over a nonisochronous network, comprising:

• receiving the isochronous signalling frame from a source device via an isochronous channel;
• encapsulating the isochronous signalling frame into a routable protocol frame;
• and
• queuing the routable protocol frame for transmission over the nonisochronous network to a destination device, the nonisochronous network thereby capable of simulating a point-to-point connection between the source device and the destination device.

A computer program for communicating an isochronous signalling frame over a nonisochronous network, the computer program encoded on a computer-readable medium and operable to execute the following steps:

• receiving the isochronous signalling frame from a source device via an isochronous channel;
• encapsulating the isochronous signalling frame into a routable protocol frame;
• and
• queuing the routable protocol frame for transmission over the nonisochronous network to a destination device, the nonisochronous network thereby capable of simulating a point-to-point connection between the source device and the destination device.

A subsystem for communicating a private network signalling message between a first node and a second node over a packet network, comprising:

• an encapsulation module coupled to the first node associated with a transmitting user station, the encapsulation module operable to:
• receive a private network signalling message from the first node;
• associate the signalling message with a source address and a destination address, the source address corresponding to an address of the first node and the destination address corresponding to an address of the second node;
• encapsulate the signalling message, the source address, and t he destination address into a routable protocol frame;
• and
• queue the routable protocol frame for transmission over the packet network;
• and
• a de-encapsulation module coupled to a second node associated with a receiving user station, the de-encapsulation module operable to:
• receive the routable protocol frame;
• and
• de-encapsulate the signalling message from the routable protocol frame, the packet network thereby simulating a point-to-point connection between the first node and the second node to effect node-to-node private network signalling therebetween.

A method of communicating a private network signalling message between a first node and a second node over a packet network, comprising:

• receiving a private network signalling message from the first node associated with a transmitting user station;
• associating the signalling message with a source address and a destination address, the source address corresponding to an address of the first node and the destination address corresponding to an address of the second node;
• encapsulating the signalling message, the source address, and the destination address into a routable protocol frame;
• queuing the routable protocol frame for transmission over the packet network;
• receiving the routable protocol frame at a second node associated with a receiving user station;
• and
• de-encapsulating the signalling message from the routable protocol frame, the packet network thereby simulating a point-to-point connection between the first node and the second node to effect node-to-node private network signalling therebetween.

A computer program for communicating a private network signalling message between a first node and a second node over a packet network, the computer program operable to execute the following steps:

• receiving a private network signalling message from the first node associated with a transmitting user station;
• associating the signalling message with a source address and a destination address, the source address corresponding to an address of the first node and the destination address corresponding to an address of the second node;
• encapsulating the signalling message, the source address, and the destination address into a routable protocol frame;
• queuing the routable protocol frame for transmission over the packet network;
• receiving the routable protocol frame at a second node associated with a receiving user station;
• and
• de-encapsulating the signalling message from the routable protocol frame, the packet network thereby simulating a point-to-point connection between the first node and the second node to effect node-to-node private network signalling therebetween.